Kerry Collins, showing equal parts graciousness and defiance, stepped
aside for Marques Tuiasosopo.
A second-round draft pick in 2001, Tuiasosopo will get a four-game
trial as the Raiders try to determine if the quarterback for 2006 and
beyond is the same guy who has held a clipboard for Collins and Rich
Gannon.
"It sends a message that no one should be too comfortable,"
linebacker Danny Clark said. "I've got a guy biting at my heels every
day in practice. I'm a fan of Kerry's, so I don't have anything negative
to say. But if we need a breath of life with Tui, I'll support it."
Tuiasosopo last played in the regular season on Nov. 2, 2003,
starting after Gannon was lost for the season with a torn labrum. He
threw an interception, fumbled twice and was out by halftime with a knee
injury that ended his season.
The Raiders signed Collins before last season, pushing Tuiasosopo to
No. 3, with Collins taking over for the last 13 games after Gannon
suffered a career-ending neck injury.
Tuiasosopo has been anchored to the bench ever since, playing only in
the preseason. His 2005 preseason was one of his worst, with no
touchdown passes and four interceptions.
After throwing one interception in his first six games, Collins has
nine interceptions in the last six, including seven interceptions in his
last four games.
Sacked only 22 times in 505 pass attempts and 13 starts in 2004,
Collins has been sacked 32 times in 442 attempts and 12 starts in 2005.
In the last two games, in particular, Collins has been hit early and
often. Not all the sacks have been protection errors, as Collins has
been more indecisive by the game.
Tuiasosopo, drafted when the Raiders were running Jon Gruden's
ball-control offense and built for a versatile quarterback in the Gannon
mold, should be able to evade the rush and create with his feet.
"I have a mobility part of my game where, hopefully, if something
breaks down, I can keep a play alive or get out of harm's way and bring
a spark that way," Tuiasosopo said. "I'll just keep battling and never
give up. I enjoy playing the game and hopefully that will show."
Coach Norv Turner said Tuiasosopo wasn't being elevated simply to
scramble for gains.
"Everyone assumes it's because he can move and all that, but Tui is a
sound dropback passer," Turner said. "I think he'll do the things he
needs to do, then improvise with his feet."
Tuiasosopo said he has gotten encouragement from his teammates, who
straddle the delicate line between two quarterbacks who wish to be
starters.
"Guys in this room have a lot of respect for Kerry," Tuiasosopo said.
"At the same time, we want to win, finish on a high note, and that
starts this weekend."
While acknowledging he has been told the job is his for the rest of
the season, Tuiasosopo said he is concentrating on nothing but the Jets.
"I'm just going to go out and hopefully my play will do all the
talking," Tuiasosopo said. "I'm not worried about the future now."
Tuiasosopo is tied to the Raiders for another season with a $477,000
salary. His contract would have voided had he played 30 percent of the
snaps
- a figure that will be impossible to reach with four games remaining.
Collins, meanwhile, may find himself looking for a new team. His 2006
contract has a salary cap number of just over $12.8 million - including
a $6 million salary, $4.25 million in likely to be earned incentives and
a $2.5 million roster bonus.
With an acceleration of only $1,053,000, Collins is looking at either
renegotiation or release.
"There will be a time to contemplate my situation after the season,"
Collins said. "Right now, we've got a game this weekend and I plan on
doing everything I can to get myself ready and help get Tui ready. It's
been awhile since he's been in there and he's going to need my support
and he'll get it because he supported me."
Collins, who said he was informed Tuesday of the decision, will go
along with it even if he doesn't agree with it.
"I'm not happy about it," Collins said. "I feel this is my team. I
feel like I give us the best chance to win Sunday. I put a lot into
this. I put in a lot of effort. I'm disappointed with the decision.
Having said that, I respect what Norv decided to do ... this isn't the
way I envisioned this thing to go but I'll help Tui any way I can."
Turner, whose own job security could well depend on the last four
games, declined to discuss Collins' future.
"It's way too early to talk about that," Turner said.
SERIES HISTORY: 34th meeting, Raiders lead 19-12-2. Jets won last
game 27-24 in Oakland. Raiders last played Jets in Meadowlands in 1996,
winning 34-13. Last five regular-season meetings have been in Oakland.
NOTES, QUOTES
--The last time they met the Jets at the Meadowlands, the Raiders
were beaten 23-22 as New York ended a club-record 13-game losing streak
at home.
Oakland, which blew a 22-10 halftime lead, lost the game on special
teams, with place-kicker Cole Ford missing three field goal attempts and
having a point-after touchdown attempt blocked.
New York's Ray Mickens returned a fourth field goal attempt 72 yards
for a touchdown for the deciding points. Center Adam Treu has expunged
much of the game from his memory, but remembers making a low snap that
holder Leo Araguz had to pick up off the ground.
"Somebody on the field goal protection team missed a guy and a guy
got through and blocked the kick," Treu said.
Treu, a rookie at the time and the only player on the Raiders roster
still around from 1997, said he was worried about his job until he got
home and saw the film which showed he was not at fault.
Incredibly, the Raiders had 374 yards passing, Napoleon Kaufman
rushed for 126 yards, they had no turnovers, and still lost the game.
"It's frustrating but we just have to put it all together,"
quarterback Jeff George said. "It can't get any worse than this."
It got worse. The Raiders, who fell to 1-3, finished 4-12.
--In the previous two games against the Jets at the Meadowlands, in
1995 and 1996, the Raiders won 47-10 and 34-13.
--In response to a story detailing the difficulties of stopping the
run and running the ball against AFC West opponents since the end of the
2002 season, the Raiders sent out a terse release in all capital letters
reminding people of their rich tradition of past success in the
division.
The Raiders, 2-14 in the division at the time of the release, fell to
2-15 with a 34-10 loss to San Diego two days later. They were outrushed,
125-81.
--Although the Raiders have the fewest interceptions in the NFL with
three (Houston is No. 31 with four), they are tied for second in fumble
takeaways with 13.
Free safety Stuart Schweigert is tied for the league lead with three
fumble recoveries.
--Four of Collins' nine interceptions over the last six games were
returned for touchdowns - a 70-yarder by San Diego's Clinton Hart, an
80-yarder by Denver's Darrent Williams, a 17-yarder by Washington's
Lemar Marshall and a 52-yarder by Tennessee's Reynaldo Hill.
Collins' passer rating, which was 91.3 as recently as Week 8, is at a
season-low 79.6 - 18th in the NFL.
--Collins had an NFL-high seven touchdown passes in the fourth
quarter.
--Jets coach Herm Edwards admitted it was strange to have the Raiders
visiting the Jets rather than the other way around. The last seven
meetings, including a playoff game, took place in Oakland.
"I'm kind of used to going out there to the same Starbucks and seeing
the
(Raider) Nation. I like visiting the Nation," Edwards said.
--It was a big day for the Tuiasosopo family. On the same evening
Marques got the call informing him he was the Raiders starting
quarterback, his brother Zach, a rookie fullback, was added to the
team's practice squad.
Zach Tuiasosopo played for the Raiders coaching staff in the Senior
Bowl.
"It's a coincidence," Turner said. "We coached him in the Senior
Bowl, John Paul Foschi has been hurting, and we need somebody in
practice to give our guys a look."
Matt Tuiasosopo, a highly recruited high school quarterback, is
playing minor league baseball for the Seattle Mariners organization and
shouldn't be wearing silver and black any time soon.
BY THE NUMBERS: 4 - Times the Raiders will have played in the Eastern
time zone after facing the Jets. Oakland previously played in New
England, Philadelphia and Washington, going 1-2.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I'm not going to sit here and point fingers. I'm
going to point the finger at myself. I'll say this - I can honestly say
that I did everything I knew how to do to get ready to play on Sunday
and I played my butt off. I can sleep good at night because I know that
I did everything I could do ... I gave it my best shot," - Raiders
quarterback Kerry Collins.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
Raiders coach Norv Turner, while conceding Marques Tuiasosopo's
strengths and skills are different from those of Kerry Collins, insists
there will be no major change in offensive philosophy with the change at
quarterback.
Still, it's hard to imagine the Raiders putting in a quarterback with
very good mobility and not getting him on the perimeter, where they
haven't had any success from a quarterback since Rich Gannon in 2002.
Tuiasosopo may give the Raiders a chance to cut loose Randy Moss.
Although Collins has a stronger downfield arm, which would in theory
give Moss a chance to get deep, opponents have consistently played Moss
with a soft man-to-man, conceding the short routes, and playing with
safety help deep to prevent long passes.
With Tuiasosopo at quarterback, safeties will need to recognize the
fact that the quarterback is capable of running around end for big gains
- and be forced to come forward and defend. That could open things up
for Moss.
PLAYER/PERSONNEL NOTES
--DT Ted Washington did not practice with thigh and quadriceps
injuries. Terdell Sands, Tommy Kelly and Anttaj Hawthorne got work
inside along with Ed Jasper, who missed last week with a back injury but
said he expected to be ready to play.
--FB John Paul Foschi remained doubtful with a foot injury, and the
Raiders appeared to be getting ready for the possibility that Foschi may
not play this season, signing rookie fullback Zach Tuiasosopo - QB
Marques' brother - to the practice squad.
--S Jarrod Cooper, listed as questionable with a calf injury,
participated in the full practice Wednesday and expects to play Sunday.
Cooper's availability would enable the Raiders to avoid using Calvin
Branch
- just re-signed last week - in the secondary.
--OL Jake Grove worked at left guard at practice and will probably
start there against the Jets.
--OL Adam Treu took most of the snaps at center and should make his
second straight start.
--G Brad Badger missed a portion of practice Wednesday and will
likely back up left guard Jake Grove and right guard Ron Stone. Badger,
who has a sore knee, was forced into action last week when Grove
received a stinger after being blocked on an interception return.
--WR Doug Gabriel has a catch of 20 or more yards in each of his last
three games.
--WR Randy Moss is 87 yards from 10,000 for his career. Moss has
reached 87 yards only once (6 catches, 87 yards vs. Denver) since the
fourth game of the season. Moss last went over 100 yards on Oct. 2,
catching four passes for 123 yards against Dallas.
GAME PLAN: With a quarterback who hasn't started in 35 games, facing
a defense ranked No. 29 against the run, the Raiders mission is clear.
Give the ball to LaMont Jordan early and often, and allow Marques
Tuiasosopo to shake off the rust with a fairly conservative game plan
and get a win in the bank. Defensively, the Raiders will look to cut off
Curtis Martin and pressure Brook Bollinger with a natural rush without
much blitzing, forcing the Jets to put a series of plays together rather
than one big play.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
Raiders LT Barry Sims vs. Jets RE John Abraham: Oakland's pass
blocking has been spotty at best the last two weeks, giving up 10 sacks
in the past two weeks. Sims had trouble with Miami's Jason Taylor, a
player built roughly on the same lines, as Abraham has 6 1/2 of New
York's 18 sacks and is the Jets' best pass rushing threat.
Jets CB Ty Law vs. Raiders WR Randy Moss: Law has five interceptions
but has been an easy mark for many receivers as the Jets have struggled
mounting a consistent pass rush. Moss caught 7 passes, but for only 74
yards against San Diego. A chance for two players whose reputations have
outweighed their performance to rebound.
INJURY IMPACT: Ted Washington's availability is Oakland's biggest
concern. Washington is the Raiders' top run defender, and having him at
full strength could cripple what will be an extremely conservative Jets
offense.
Controlling the line of scrimmage and Curtis Martin's running plays
would enable Oakland to Jets quarterback Brooks Bollinger to the air and
make him susceptible to the pass rush, particularly defensive end
Derrick Burgess.
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